TEHRAN, Oct 5 (Bernama-dpa) — Nineteen large dams in Iran are reportedly on the verge of drying up amid the ongoing water crisis, reported German Press Agency (dpa), citing a report by state news agency IRNA.
Reservoirs in several provinces are affected, with the average fill rate of the approximately 200 dams nationwide at 35 per cent only, the report stated.
Iran is one of the driest countries in the world and rainfall has declined significantly in recent years, while drought periods and other extreme weather events increase.
The water crisis has long been looming and this summer affected residents of Tehran in particular.
The government is responding with drastic measures, restricting water supply in many parts of Tehran and other cities in order to conserve water.
Dry provinces such as those in the south-west or the centre of the country are hit even harder by water shortages given summer temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius.
The authorities are issuing ever sterner warnings about an escalation of the crisis. “The reduction in rainfall and the prolonged drought are so severe that they cannot be solved with short-term measures,” IRNA quoted the head of the Water Research Institute in the Ministry of Energy, Mohammed-Reza Kavianpour, as saying.
Iran is also facing less rain in the autumn, he said, proposing new approaches in industry, agriculture and among the population.
— BERNAMA-dpa